A quick one this week as I’m on hols.

An interesting thing happened after last week’s post. You might recall I mentioned Grapple Mobile who seem close to selling their business for £15m after 7 months in business  – see here

I thought they exemplified some best practice in terms of business strategy execution.

Well the charming CEO Alistair Crane contacted me and invited me to joint his network on LinkedIn.

Isn’t this brilliant? He is featured in the Sunday Times, I write about him in a blog that goes to less than 2000 people, a handful of  those people Tweet about it, my LinkedIn profile is updated with details of the post and by some means the CEO hears about it and now we have communicated. All in about 3 days.

It’s mindboggling – and a reminder as if one was needed of the unbelievable power of the internet in making connections, especially between you and those who would love to be your customer, if only they knew you existed.

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A great story in yesterday’s Sunday Times…

One Jamie True, who is 35 and nauseatingly good looking, and his 24 year old CEO Alistair Crane, are set to sell their company, Grapple Mobile, for more than £15m. They have received many unsolicited bids. The company was set up 7 months ago. They make Apps (mobile device applications) for smartphones, made by the likes of Apple and Blackberry.

A number of things struck me as salient about Grapple’s story -

1. Grapple Mobile have proprietary software to allow them to make the apps in “days”. This looks like a USP to me – why a customer should choose them over other apps designers. It’s why Boeing made 50% return-on-sales for decades with their 747 – no one else could make a plane so big (read “efficient”). They dominated the market. They had a monopoly (which is not illegal).

2. Grapple work with big advertising and marketing agencies to develop apps for the agencies’ clients. This is a great route to market – offer your USP not directly to your customers, do it through a third party (in this case the agencies) who already have access to your target market, yet cannot offer what you can. But how do you get into big advertising and marketing agencies? Read on…

3.  Grapple Mobile is chaired by Jon Claydon, a “veteran advertising executive”. That’s the icing on the cake.

A great USP, a clever route to market and an insider to make it all work.

I hope Jamie True and Alistair Crane get their £15m.

They deserve it.

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